Henry's Secret
by aBraveNewShip
Summary: Tumblr prompt: "Henry has a girlfriend and tells his moms (plus their reactions)." SwanQueen


At 17 years-old, Henry Mills had lived a fuller life than most people had who were in their 40's. Being the son of the Queen and the Savior, and the grandson of Prince Charming, Snow White, and Rumplestiltskin, the brown-haired teenager had had his fair share of adventures as well as tragedies. He'd looked death in the face on numerous occasions, not to mention having actually died for a little bit when he was 12. He'd witnessed every singly member of his family fight for their life at least once, all against insurmountable odds. During his 17 years on this earth, Henry had quickly learned that the most important thing is and would always be family.

Even after being transported to a different dimension and watching his grandfather sacrifice himself, having had his heart ripped from his chest and trading places with Peter Pan, Henry soon learned that the only time he'd ever felt true, paralyzing fear was when his mothers called him into the living room one sunny Friday afternoon. Without warning, he'd been summoned by Emma, the chill mom. He'd been in his own room, quietly reading to himself, minding his own business. This had been an unprovoked attack.

With two-year-old daughter Alana spending the day at the Charmings,' Emma and Regina felt that this was the perfect opportunity to have a talk with their eldest. They'd been meaning to do this for some time, but between their hectic jobs and Alana becoming potty-trained— well, it just slipped their minds. It was only when Henry had come home 10 minutes past his curfew the previous weekend that the mothers remembered.

Sitting together on the lily-pad-green sofa adjacent from their stone fireplace, Storybrooke's Sheriff and her wife, the Mayor, waited patiently as Henry descended the staircase. They could hear the loud thump as he landed on the first floor, as well his feet dragging across the furnished hardwood. The loose change in his cargo shorts jingled happily as he entered the living room; as soon as he did, though, he immediately regretted it.

Flipping his growing hair to the side, pushing his bangs out of his eyes, Henry asked in his post-pubescent voice, "Everything ok?"

Regina rubbed her hands against her knees anxiously and gestured to the chair across from her and Emma, "Please, dear, have a seat."

With great apprehension, Henry settled himself into the faux-leather recliner and glanced from mom to mom. "You guys all right? You look kinda upset. If this about the car, I swear I didn't see the scratches—"

"No, Kid, it's not about that," Emma dismissed quickly. Taking her cue from the woman beside her, she cleared her throat and leaned forward, making every effort to engage their son. "We just wanted to, erm… well, see, the thing is that we were, um… what I mean is… Gina? Help?" she whimpered.

Rolling her eyes at her wife, who never had been very good with discipline, Regina braced herself stared intently at Henry. So as not to worry him, she gave him the friendliest smile she could manage without seeming too phony. "Henry, dear, what your mother is trying to say is that… It's really quite simple, you see, we merely wanted to… It's not that we don't…"

"Not so easy, is it?" Emma said, nudging Regina in the ribs with her elbow. "Look, Henry, we're not trying to gang up on you or anything. It's just that we want to make sure you're ok. That's all. We've been so busy lately, we wanted to check in with you and see how you're doing."

Nodding in agreement, the brunette went even further. "We wanted to remind you that if you ever needed anything, needed someone to talk to or what have you, we're both here for you. We understand that we've both been preoccupied in the last few weeks, but we're still your mothers. We want you to be happy."

Listening to the women babble on, Henry felt as though he'd stepped through another portal. They hardly ever seemed this jittery. The last time they were so fidgety, they'd told Henry he was going to be a big brother. "Are you guys sure you're all right? You're acting… weird."

Turning to each other for guidance, Emma and Regina communicated through a series of very quick expressions, all of which were meaningless to Henry. Without ever saying a word, they argued about who would be the one to do it. In the end, just like all of their disagreements, Regina won: it was on Emma.

"Ok, here's the thing, are you doing drugs or not?" the blonde blurted out suddenly.

Henry's eyes widened in disbelief and he shot up out of his chair. "What? No! Why would you ask that?"

Regina tilted her head back and shook it helplessly, just as she always did when Emma took the lead. But Emma just shrugged and added, "You've just seemed kinda different lately. You haven't been going to Gold's as much— yeah he told us— you never wanna go to the stables, Dad said you haven't even had any sword practices for a month." Standing up to meet her son's posture, Emma did what she always did: she stuck her foot in her mouth. "Hey, yanno, experimenting happens. I don't know what they did back in the Enchanted Forest, but I get it. I tried some shrooms when I was younger, I did a little weed. It's nothing to be ashamed of, we just don't want it to become a habit. You understand, right?"

Seeing as the conversation as it stood was getting them nowhere, Regina rose to her feet: their triangular formation was complete. "Why don't we all just calm down, hm? Emma, stop talking," she instructed gently. Thankful for the intervention, Emma gladly went silent. "Now, Henry, please, if you're not… experimenting, then what have you been doing? It isn't like you to keep things from us. Remember, in this family, we're honest with one another."

Having turned his back towards his parents, Henry chewed on his bottom lip and played with the coins in his pocket. He ran his thumb along he ridges of a quart and made that his focal point. Slowly, Henry rotated back around to face Emma and Regina. One of his mothers had gone pink in the ears, while the other one had her arms folded over her chest. Emma only went pink when she was truly mortified.

"I'm not on drugs," Henry assured forcefully. "I've never even tried them." Slightly relieved, although that wasn't the point, Regina nodded encouragingly. Henry's heart pounded in his chest and his palms went clammy. Suddenly, he felt a small chill roll down the back of his neck and he shuddered slightly. "You're right," he conceded finally, "I have been keeping something from you. But, it's not bad, I swear. I'm not, like, messing with magic or anything. I learned my lesson the first time." Shuffling back to the chair, the young man flopped into the cushion and exhaled loudly. Emma and Regina followed suit, anxiously awaiting an explanation. "I've been seeing someone," Henry mumbled.

"I'm sorry, what was that dear?" Regina blinked. "Could you repeat that?"

Sitting forward with his elbows in his knees, Henry swallowed hard and said, "I'm seeing someone. I… I have a girlfriend." And just like that, his parents reacted just as he'd expected them too. Emma fell back against the couch and folded her hands on top of her head, a slightly impressed smile spreading across her lips. Regina, meanwhile, narrowed her eyes at Henry and pursed her lips together. "We haven't been together very long. I was gonna tell you, I swear. I just… I forgot," Henry said with a questionable shrug. Ok, so he hadn't forgotten per se; it was more like, he was going to see how long he could put off telling them.

As Emma's concern washed away, Regina's only began to rise. "Pardon me, but did you say that you 'forgot?' You 'forgot' to tell us that you're in a relationship? I'm sorry, how exactly does one 'forget' to tell their parents they're in a relationship? It isn't as if they forgot to grab milk at the grocery story or pick up the dry-cleaning, it's a relationship for Gods'—"

Had Emma not put a hand on Regina's shoulder when she did, the brunette would have just gone on and on. "What your mother's trying to say, " Emma began with quiet satisfaction, "is that we're happy for you and that we appreciate your honesty."

Slightly afraid to look at Regina, Henry peered up at her reluctantly. "Mom?"

Silently counting to ten in her head, the former Evil Queen took a few deep breaths before she opened her mouth to speak again. "Your mother's right," she squeaked. "We very grateful that you told us the truth."

"And," Emma hissed with another elbow nudge.

"And," Regina started. With a surrendering sigh, she said, "And we're very happy for you."

"For real?" Henry tested.

Regina nodded crisply. "For real." Still just hanging on by a thread, she did her best to seem calm and collected. The last thing she wanted was for Henry to think she didn't support him. "So, when were you planning on introducing us? Or did you forget about that part as well?"

Looking like a deer caught in the headlights, Henry checked the clock on the mantle. "Um, we're actually supposed to hang out, like… now. Do you…?"

"Yes, yes, invite her over, by all means," Regina requested. "Let's meet the girl who's stolen our son away," she muttered as Henry whipped out his cellphone and texted his girlfriend.

"Huh?" Henry asked.

"I said, we can't wait to meet the girl who's stolen your affections!" Madam Mayor exclaimed.

Leaning over to Regina's ear, Emma whispered, "Nice save."

Not even five minutes after Henry hit the send button, the doorbell to the Swan-Mills household echoed through the rooms. "That's her," the teenager piped. "I'll just, uh, bring her in."

Together, Emma and Regina stood up, hand-in-hand, comforting each other in Regina's time of need. They knew this day was bound to come, but neither of them had truly prepared themselves for what they were currently feeling: pride, shock, bewilderment, loneliness. It all hit like a wrecking ball crashing in through their front window. They hadn't any time to take cover, to accept the fact that Henry was no longer a child.

"Just breathe," Emma said to her wife, gently stroking her arm. "Breathe and smile."

"How's this?" Regina wanted to know, turning for a consult. She looked as if she were smiling for a dentist; her teeth were showing, but there was no emotion.

It was too late to turn back now. Emma saw a bright skirt in the front hallway and said, "Good enough." She locked fingers with Regina, hoping that would ease her nerves.

"Don't worry, it's cool," Henry said to the woman behind him. Walking up to his parents, he felt her hands squeeze in his and he knew she was frightened. They'd had talks about his mothers and he'd assured her they weren't as scary as the stories about them. It'd taken a lot of convincing on his part, but eventually, she believed him. Knowing that there was no going back after this, Henry took a step to the side and wrapped his arm around the woman's waist. "Moms, this is Tiana."

The young lady before Emma and Regina shifted her weight from one leg to the other, clutching Henry as if her life depended on it. Dressed in beige cowboy boats and a teal sundress that draped over her slender figure, she wore a denim jacket to top it all off. She bat her magnificent light-brown eyes timidly and her curly, brown hair bounced as she nodded to the leaders of the town. Even with such a shy smile, her dimples made an appearance "It's a pleasure to meet you," she greeted cordially; she all but curtsied.

The very moment Regina saw who was responsible for Henry's mischievous behavior, she understood. She was no longer able to stay upset with her son. Without ever moving a muscle, Henry was more attentive than Regina had ever witnessed him being; he looked at Tiana with such a sense of adoration and respect. Regina recognized that look, as Emma gave her the same one whenever they were alone. It was as clear as day just how much Henry cared for the young woman. Regina was only somewhat disappointed that Tiana wasn't more wicked or evil-looking, as it would have made it much easier not to like her. She wasn't expecting a girl who's voice was as gentle as her features.

Without realizing it, Regina's open-grimace slowly transformed into a genuine grin as she and Emma shook the young lady's hand. "Well, Tiana, I know I speak for both Emma and I when I say that it is _most certainly_ a pleasure to meet you as well. Welcome to our home."


End file.
